I'm just thinking you don't need to stick to Red Heart Super Saver. Even washed that stuff is not that soft. It hurts my hands to knit with it.

Jan, several years ago I made a camera case out of Red Heart Super Saver and have been using it frequently. The other day I was surprised to find that the case is now very very soft.

However, I have to agree with you: in general, that stuff is scratchy, and since wearing it out like I did doesn't work for most projects, I would only use it for rugs or other non-clothes items!!

I use a lot of Caron Simply Soft for baby blankets and such. One friend with three kids (and, subsequently, three baby blankets from me) swears by that yarn as she has machine washed and dried the blankets gazillions of times, and they always come out looking brand new! Caron has lots of interesting colors, too!

I'm very interested in buying my next yarn from elann! Thanks, Ingrid, for the link to the other online yarn store. Does anyone know of any others besides what's already listed in this thread?

The 100gr is the weight of the skein; when we talk about weight of a yarn that's whether it's fingering, dk, worsted or bulky. Many yarns are put up in the same 100 gr skein but 100g of lace would 880 yds, sock would be 440 yds and bulky would be about 120 yds or so. So you need something that will knit to the same gauge as the original yarn, which sounds like a bulky yarn. You need the same yardage, no matter how many skeins that would take of your substitute

Ps. The baby breath yarn that I was talking about earlier in this thread that I said I bought. I absolutely hate it. I can't knit cables with it, it gets all messed up. I'm actually considering donating it to my aunt who wants to learn to knit. I can do garter stitch with it fine, but it was not what I was looking to do with it. Unfortunately I bought 5 friken balls of it. Ugh

They want you to use the same yarn in the pattern, that's how you derive the thickness of it. To substitute you would look for something that knits to the same gauge (stitches per inch) on the same needles.

That yarn isn't too bad, but cables generally look best in a smooth yarn. Boucle tends to hide pattern and details.

New knitters often choose the soft, fluffy or boucle yarns, but it's easiest to learn with a smooth, light colored yarn. If you like the yarn otherwise you could save it for a project where detail isn't important. Like a garter stitch baby blanket or something.

__________________
Jan

When asking questions ALWAYS post the name and a link for the pattern if you have it.

So why doesn't it say how thick it is in the pattern? Seems kinda dumb!

Every pattern will tell you which yarn to use, and they will also list the gauge (stitches per inch) you should get with the yarn and the size needles they require.

Also, it helps to look at a photo of the finished product. You have to look closely at the stitches, to see what kind of yarn was used. You'll want to use a similar type of yarn as the designer used for their item.

If you want to substitute a different yarn, you should first look up all the information you can find about the yarn the designer listed on the pattern. It might say that it is "worsted" or "sportweight" or "bulky" or "super bulky". Usually, you can find the website for the brand name of that yarn, and you will see a webpage just for that specific yarn.

After knowing all you can about the required yarn, you should then try to find a suitable substitute. You'll want to look at the label on the yarn, to see the details of the type of yarn it is. Here is a website that will walk you through how to understand the information on the yarn label.http://www.craftyarncouncil.com/label.html

Before long, you'll be able to grab just the right yarn to make substitutes. It just takes a little time and experience. Don't give up!

Ps. The baby breath yarn that I was talking about earlier in this thread that I said I bought. I absolutely hate it. I can't knit cables with it, it gets all messed up. I'm actually considering donating it to my aunt who wants to learn to knit. I can do garter stitch with it fine, but it was not what I was looking to do with it. Unfortunately I bought 5 friken balls of it. Ugh

You might want to hold on to it, and use it for a different project later. Lots of knitters hold onto yarn, and save it for future use. (I'm one of them! My yarn stash is HUGE!!)

All yarns have their purpose. Some yarns are very thin, and are perfect for knitting or crocheting tiny baby designs....or doll clothes. Other yarns are very thick, and can be used to create finished projects very quickly.

You'll find fluffy yarns, which are fun to make scarves and blankets with. And you'll also see some very silky yarns, that are nice for making tops and shawls. Standard worsted weight yarn has it's purpose as well.

Within all the weight categories (fingering, light, dk, sportweight, worsted, aran, chunky, bulky, super bulky), you'll find several different types of yarn. You'll see about 20 different kinds of yarns that are worsted weight. Some are fluffy, some are smooth, some are silky, and some are rough. They each have their purpose, and you'll eventually learn which yarns work best with specific projects.

Ahh I see. So maybe I should try using it for garter stitch rather than doing cables with it. I actually bought it because the pattern on the lable is a cable blanket and looked so nice, but I think I will save it for another project or try using it for garter stitch. I appreciate all your responses! I'm really enjoying learning about all these yarns!
If anyone is interested I have a knitting store up the street from my place and this is the selection they sell, http://www.yarnfwd.com/#

it looks as though you can order it online

The Following User Says Thank You to LoveBugAngel For This Useful Post: